the techno-social environment
It’s the social system technology is embedded in that matters
the techno-social environment
Western democracies, by contrast, with our open speech and open systems, are supposed to have a commons, a marketplace of ideas that allows for cross-cutting dialogue and eventual consensus. It has been replaced by an information ecology shaped by algorithmic selection. Content and creators optimized for engagement outcompete everything else—not... See more
Renee DiResta • Crisis of Trust 2026: The Retreat Into Insularity
constant, identity-targeted conflict that drives polarization and grievance.
Renee DiResta • Crisis of Trust 2026: The Retreat Into Insularity
Different genres, same engine: trust earned through charisma, resonance, and the steady performance of alignment, inside a media ecology built for niches.
Renee DiResta • Crisis of Trust 2026: The Retreat Into Insularity
Trust, in other words, is transferable through parasocial relationships—regardless of whether the institution has done anything to earn it.
Crisis of Trust 2026: The Retreat Into Insularity
Digital carnival is an endless performance of human extremes—emotions, ambitions, identities. In pursuit of affirmation, we craft symbolic extensions of self—digital masks—and replay ourselves in variations, again and again. Digital media carnivalize identity.
Andrey Mir • The Digital Reversal. Thread-saga of Media Evolution
Feelings are the compass of social navigation. They play the same role in social dynamics as the senses do in physical settings: they guide us. To navigate the social-digital, we need to sense the attitudes of others, just as a tribal individual needs to navigate tribal moods and attitudes. Digital reactions of users evolve (or devolve) into
... See moreAndrey Mir • The Digital Reversal. Thread-saga of Media Evolution
In other words, vibes.
The engagement with digital flow is stimulated by hormonal rewards—evolutionary physiological mechanisms that encourage people to search for something useful and share it with others for bonding and recognition, much like real hunting and gathering.
Andrey Mir • The Digital Reversal. Thread-saga of Media Evolution
Essentially, web surfing is a form of digital hunting and gathering—with the goal of finding something to feed curiosity and share with others for social gains.
Andrey Mir • The Digital Reversal. Thread-saga of Media Evolution
in today’s social media environment, identity is behavior. Every action on social media is identity signaling that serves as a request for affirmation. Signaling identity is the digital labor that turns into the perks of socialization within respective digital tribes.